Melinda's Garden Moment: Managing invasive plants

MADISON (WKOW) -- You may have worked on your garden all summer only to have it overrun by an invasive plant. Buckthorn, honeysuckle, and Tree of Heaven are just a few of the landscape plants that have left the garden and invaded our natural spaces.

Many gardeners are reluctant to remove them as they provide some privacy or screen a bad view. Plant a garden or hedge to take its place and get busy removing these invaders.

Pull or dig small seedlings as soon as they appear, or remove a 6 inch strip of bark around the base of the plant. You can also cut the plant to the ground in fall and treat the stump with a brush killer recommended for this purpose, or paint the bottom 12 inches of the trunk with a brush killer. This prevents the roots from re-sprouting.

As always read and follow label directions carefully. You can find out more gardening tips on Melinda Myers' website.